KATHMANDU, Oct 2: Nepal lost to Canada by four wickets in the triangular T20 series last night. Canada clinched the victory after scoring 18 runs in the 19th over, aided by two sixes and a four. Invited to bat first after losing the toss in King City, Canada, Nepal got off to a solid start.
Anil Shah and Ashif Sheikh forged a 70-run partnership for the first wicket. Shah opened the innings with two boundaries on the first and fifth balls of the first over.
After a single on the first ball of the second over, Ashif rotated the strike back to Shah, who hit a six on the second, fourth, and last balls of the over. Nepal added six runs in the third over, courtesy of a boundary from Ashif, and seven runs in the fourth over with another four.
A six from Ashif in the fifth over and two fours in the sixth over helped Nepal reach 56 runs at an impressive run rate of 9.33 during the powerplay.
T20 Triangular Series: Nepal to face Canada today
However, Nepal’s momentum slowed after the powerplay. They managed only four runs in the seventh over and six in the eighth, including a four.
By the ninth over, Nepal had scored 70 runs without losing a wicket. The innings took a downturn as they lost their rhythm. In the first ball of the tenth over, Harsh Thaker claimed Anil Sah’s wicket.
Nepal added just four runs in that over. In the eleventh over, Ashif fell as the second wicket, dismissed by Saad Bin Zafar.
Wickets continued to tumble for Nepal in the twelfth over, with captain Rohit Paudel dismissed for just four runs by Harsh Thaker. After adding only 10 runs across three overs, Nepal lost three wickets and began to feel the pressure.
Just two runs came in the thirteenth over, and in the fourteenth, they lost Kushal Malla as the fourth wicket. Malla, who managed only four runs, was dismissed by Praveen Kumar. Nepal could muster only four runs in the fifteenth over and six in the sixteenth.
Gulshan Jha sparked some hope with a six off the second ball of the seventeenth over, contributing nine runs in that over.
However, in the third ball of the eighteenth over, Nepal lost their fifth wicket as Kushal Bhurtel was out.
Gulshan hit his second six on the final ball of that over. Nepal managed to score 12 runs in the 19th over, highlighted by a boundary.
In the fourth ball of the final over, Dipendra Singh Airee was dismissed for 13 runs, but Karan KC’s six off the fifth ball helped Nepal add 11 runs to their total.
